Cruelty-free

In the animal rights movement, cruelty-free is a label for products or activities that do not harm or kill animals. Products tested on animals are not considered cruelty-free, since these tests are often painful and cause the suffering of millions of animals every year.[1]

“Every product, every action, and every lifestyle decision can be a choice to harm less.”

In 1957 Charles Hume and William Russell introduced the concept of the three R’s in their book Principles of Humane Experimental Technique. These techniques to reduce animals used in tests and their suffering include: replacement (eliminate an animal test altogether), reduction (less animals used in test by using statistical analysis) and refinement (making tests less painful).[5]

Animals such as rabbits, rats, mice, and guinea pigs are forced to eat or inhale substances, or have a cosmetic ingredient rubbed onto their shaved skin, eyes or ears every day for 28 or 90 days to see if they have an allergic reaction. Then they are killed and cut open to examine the effects the ingredient has on internal organs. These tests are also done with pregnant animals who, after much suffering, are killed along with the fetus. In more prolonged carcinogen tests, rats are force-fed a cosmetic ingredient over two years, monitored for cancer, and then killed.[7]

“Typically a young rabbit is tightly constrained in a box so that he is unable to move... Clips sometimes hold his eyelids open. Anesthesia is not generally administered. A researcher applies a concentrated substance to the outer layer of the eye and observes over a span days or weeks for responses such as blindness, bleeding, hemorrhaging and ulceration. At the end the rabbits are generally killed.”

As technology developed, outdated animal testing is being replaced with quicker, cheaper and more accurate methods. Critics point out that humane alternatives can be slow to implement, costly, and test only one compound at a time.[9] Alternatives have shown positive results. For example, reconstructed human epidermis—which uses human skin donated from cosmetic surgery to replace the rabbit Draize skin test—is more relevant to human reactions. Other methods replace the Draize eye test by using in vitro (test-tube) human tissue. Computer-based systems allow for isolation of a select tissue or organ to conduct tests in an extremely controlled environment. These tests not only save countless animal lives, but are more precise and accurate at protecting humans from toxic substances.[10] Another cruelty-free option is using ingredients that have already been established as safe, such as the 20,000 ingredients in the European Union database.

The Leaping Bunny symbol certifies that a product was not tested on animals.

Companies now offer a wide range of cruelty-free products such as cosmetics, personal-care products, household cleaners, clothing, shoes, condoms (which are sometimes processed with casein), and candles (which usually use paraffin or beeswax). Organizations such as PETA, Choose Cruelty Free, Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics, British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, and its offshoot organization Cruelty Free International have released lists of cruelty-free products and cruel products to boycott. Since the 1990s the Leaping Bunny has been the only international third-party cruelty-free certification program.

"With these synthetic brushes you no longer have to choose between being socially conscious and sacrificing quality or performance."

National Cruelty-Free Week is an event in the United Kingdom every year arranged by the BUAV. The 2006 event was from 17–23 July. Other, similar, events include: National Vegetarian Week, UK Vegan Week and World Vegan Day, which takes place each year on November 1.

While some manufacturers have begun to label their products as “not tested on animals”, “we do not conduct animal testing”, “never tested on animals”, “against animal testing” or “cruelty-free”, these labels are confusing and potentially misleading since there is no clear legal definition as to what they mean.[12]